We know one of the former sporting chief’s misfits could be heading out on loan in the hopes of trying to get him to convince somebody else to buy him for good. But that’s already been the case for one of Damien Comolli’s “brilliant” (disrespectfully) signings from last summer — and now he’s back in Turin.
So now we get to do that whole song and dance again.
What does that mean for Portuguese fullback Joao Mario? Well, another possible loan spell.
According to Sky Italia’s Gianluca Di Marzio and Italian
transfer reporter Nicolo Schira on Thursday, Juventus are talking about a Joao Mario move away from Turin with Fiorentina, with it likely to be a loan-with-option to buy formula, which is slightly different than the dry loan that the former Porto man was on during the second half of last season with Bologna. Even with Joao Mario playing much more than he did during his time with Juventus in the first half of the 2025-26 campaign, it wasn’t enough to convince Bologna to try and negotiate a permanent transfer and keep him at the Dall’Ara beyond June.
So now Joao Mario is back, appearing in friendlies once again, and certainly not in Luciano Spalletti’s plans despite that previous fact.
A lot like the rumored Loïs Openda loan move to Lyon that also appears to be at the final stages of negotiations, this is new Juve CEO Giovanni Carnevali hopefully clearing another one of the outcasts off the roster. Of course, it’s only a temporary fix, with Joao Mario’s form likely to determine if Fiorentina would actually drop however much the rumored option to buy ends up being.
Plus, let’s just hope our old buddy Fabio Paratici is still in need for depth at fullback as it appears Fiorentina will be with a number of their current options linked with moves elsewhere this summer.
So, just as we did when Juventus signed Zeki Celik right from under Roma’s nose and we checked in with our friends at Chiesa Di Totti, let’s see what Viola Nation’s Mr. Tito thinks of his beloved Fiorentina going for Joao Mario:
Normally, I’d be all for grabbing a flawed but talented player who’s available for cheap. In this circumstance, though, I really don’t understand the reasoning. For one thing, there’s the salary. Paratici’s quest to slash the wage bill makes sense; buying a player who’s on €3.7 million a year doesn’t.
Just wait until you see him defend if he ever wears that nice new viola kit, Tito. Then you’ll really wonder why Paratici wanted to bring him in (on loan or even something more than that).
